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Updated: Mar 15, 2026
Dependence of Laser-induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Results on Pulse Energies and Timing Parameters Using Soil Simulants
Published on: September 23, 2013
Standoff Detection of Geological Samples of Metal, Rock, and Soil at Low Pressures Using Laser-Induced Breakdown
Jae-Jun Choi1, Soo-Jin Choi1, Jack J Yoh2
1Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, South Korea.
Abstract:
Categorized certified reference materials simulating metal, rock, soils, or dusts are used to demonstrate the standoff detection capability of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) at severely low pressure conditions. A Q-switched Nd:YAG laser operating at 1064 nm with 17.2-50 mJ energy per pulse was used to obtain sample signals from a distance of 5.5 m; the detection sensitivity at pressures down to 0.01 torr was also analyzed. The signal intensity response to pressure changes is explained by the ionization energy and electronegativity of elements, and from the estimated full width half-maximum (FWHM) and electron density, the decrease in both background noise and line broadening makes it suitable for low pressure detection using the current standoff LIBS configuration. The univariate analyses further showed high correlation coefficients for geological samples. Therefore, the present work has extended the current state-of-the-art of standoff LIBS aimed at harsh environment detection.
